Blister cardboard packs are known as such, particularly in the medical sector, where they serve for packaging medications such as tablets and the like. One such blister cardboard pack BK is illustrated in FIG. 1. It comprises substantially a blister pack B and a cardboard inlay K, the latter being sealed to the blister pack and serving to reinforce the blister pack as well as to carry information, for example, as to how and how often the medication is to be administered and as to indications of the manufacturer.
In the medical sector the blister pack B is also used by itself for packaging and presenting medical preparations such as tablets and the like. This blister pack is fabricated in a known blister pack production machine 1 as illustrated in FIG. 2. In this arrangement the tablets are sealed between two tapes of film which are later punctured or separated from each other when a tablet is removed. The endless blister pack tape is separated into individual sections in or following the blister pack production machine 1, each section containing one or more tablets, whereby the sections are subsequently inserted into a collation package.
The blister pack B used as a basis of the present invention comprises a bottom film, which is fabricated for example of PVC and which is provided with the blisters N for the product to be inserted. These blisters are formed from the bottom film in the blister pack production machine 1. On to this bottom film a second film or cover film is sealed by means of seal coating which, for opening the blister pack to permit removal of a tablet, is stripped from the bottom film. In turn this second seal film is usually made up of several layers, for example a polyester layer, a metal foil layer and a layer of paper. On the side of the cover film facing the bottom film the first layer is the polyester layer which constitutes the weak point for stripping the cover film from the bottom film. This is topped by the metal foil layer, for instance a layer of aluminium foil, which closes off the tablet air and water tight in the blisters. To enhance stability against the cover film being forced through, the layer of paper may be additionally provided on the layer of metal foil. On the layer of polyester the seal coating is provided, by means of which the seal film is sealed to the bottom film.
If this blister pack B is now to be used not by itself but instead together with a cardboard inlay K to reinforce the blister pack and for the purpose of presenting information, it was hitherto normal practice in the fabrication of such a blister cardboard pack BK to apply the additional cardboard to the blister pack manually or with the aid of simple tools. To do this, the blister pack tape formed in the blister pack production machine 1 is first cut into separate sections which have the final size of the blister cardboard pack. Then the cardboard inlay is manually placed on the blister pack on the side of the bottom film having the blisters. For this purpose openings or recesses are provided in the cardboard inlay at the locations of the blisters which surround and receive the blisters on placement of the cardboard inlay. Alternatively the blister cardboard pack formed in this way may subsequently be provided with a longitudinal and/or transverse arrangement of perforations P. By means of these perforation lines sections for individual administrations, e.g. for a single tablet, may be formed, the individual section permitting separation from the blister cardboard pack. To facilitate removal of the tablet from the separated individual section further recesses E may be provided in the cardboard inlay and in the bottom film of the blister pack at the cross points of the perforation lines P, i.e. between neighboring blisters N. At these further recesses E the cover film of the blister pack B is not covered by the cardboard inlay K and the bottom film of the blister pack, it instead remaining free. After separation of an individual section from the blister cardboard pack BK one such free remaining part of the recess E of the cardboard inlay and of the bottom film is then to be found on at least one corner of said individual section. By finger picking this free end the cover film of the blister pack can be stripped from the bottom film of the blister pack provided with the blisters, thus opening the blister and enabling the tablet to be removed. The important thing in this respect is that the bottom film of blister pack B having the blisters remains connected to the cardboard inlay K.
Since the cardboard inlay of the blister cardboard pack as fabricated hitherto by usual means is placed manually on a blister pack section separated from a blister pack tape produced in a blister pack production machine 1, problems exist with this method due to lack of precision in holding and guiding the blister pack sections and the cardboard inlay as well as due lack of accuracy in adjusting and alignment of the cardboard inlay relative to the blister pack section. As a result of these mechanical and manual inaccuracies or inadequacies difficulties are experienced in the production of the blister cardboard pack. Especially when the cardboard inlay is placed offset sideways from the blister pack section, the recesses of the cardboard inlay fail to surround the blisters of the blister pack fully or correctly, resulting in a faulty blister cardboard pack being produced. After placement of the cardboard inlay on the blister pack section the perforation for forming the individual sections cannot be performed in this intermediate condition due to lack of proper holding or guidance of the blister cardboard pack, this also being the cause for faulty packs. This manual production process is inconvenient, unreliable, time-consuming and expensive due to the high reject rate and also due to the high manpower requirement involved.